Portable electronics devices, such as cassette players, portable radios, Compact Disk (CD) players, and Moving Pictures Experts Group Audio Layer-3 (MP3) players have permeated everyday life. Portable audio devices allow users convenient access to audio performances while minimizing the impact on a user's mobility. Typically, portable audio devices are battery powered. A drawback to battery power is that these devices may quickly consume the battery's stored electrical energy. Thus, a user may have to replace the battery or recharge the battery. Users may find themselves having to carry spare batteries, if they wish to use the device for a long time period, or if they are unsure of how much useful life is remaining in the battery. Additionally, recharging batteries may be inconvenient or time consuming.
Another drawback is that the portable device may be inadvertently activated when removable headphones are disconnected from the main unit. For instance, a MP3 player may be accidentally powered on when the system's earphones are not connected. In this situation, the MP3 player's batteries may become prematurely rundown which requires the purchase of additional batteries, time consuming recharging, and, perhaps, user dissatisfaction. Further, portable audio devices may utilize wireless connection such as Bluetooth, Infrared, radio frequency (RF), and the like to communicate with an output device. For example, a CD player may utilize a wireless connection with a headset to avoid the need for a cord between the unit and the headset. When wireless communication is utilized, the output device may be removed beyond the effective range of the main unit resulting in the main unit running down the battery source without providing a tangible benefit to the user. This difficulty may go unnoticed because the user may become distracted, thus forgetting that the main unit is still operating.
Therefore, it would be desirable to provide a system and method for automatically reducing power consumption or turning off the portable electronic device including the system when an output device is not present.